Scientific name

Tabebuia spp

Other names

English: Ipe, Lapacho

Geographic origin

Central America and South America

Description

&;8226; Sapwood: Yellowish white colour.
&;8226; Heartwood: dark grey with a very characteristic greenish shade.
&;8226; Fiber: Straight, usually intertwined or very intertwined.
&;8226; Grain: Thin to medium size

Capacity of being impregnated

&;8226; Sapwood: Medium capacity of being impregnated
&;8226; Heartwood: Low capacity of being impregnated

Mechanization

&;8226; Sawing process: Ordinary problems due to hardness. Fast blunting
&;8226; Drying process: Slow. Little risk of deformation and crack formation.
&;8226; Planing process: Difficult due to its hardness and high risk of repelling. Slow mechanisation is recommended
&;8226; Gluing process: Tannins hamper proper adherence.
&;8226; Nailing and screwing process: pre-drilling is recommended due to hardness.
&;8226; Finish: Rubber deposits can locally hamper varnish adherence

Physical properties

&;8226; Apparent density at 12% humidity
1.050 kg/m3 very heavy wood
&;8226; Dimensional stability
- Volumetric contraction coefficient
0.41 % stable wood
- Relation between contractions 1.27% no tendency to deformity
&;8226; Hardness (Chaláis-Meudon) 8.5 very hard wood

Mechanical properties

&;8226; Resistance to static flexion 1,750 kg/cm2 &;8226; Elasticity module 200,000 kg/cm2
&;8226; Resistance to compression 890 kg/cm2

Observations

&;8226; It is currently a very popular sort of wood with much demand and very little supply
&;8226; It can be substituted by a large number of other species.